 Inhabitants of this woreda were affected by the 1984-1985 famine, which forced them to sell off their cattle.The 2007 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 64,310, of whom 32,378 were men and 31,932 were women; 19,130 or 29.75% of its population were urban dwellers.The majority of the inhabitants said they were Muslim, with 59.88% of the population reporting they observed this belief, while 36.59% of the population practised Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.